Staff profile: Novuyani Peyi

Novuyani Peyi is the Keiskamma Art Project's Staff Coordinator. She is also a member of the Keiskamma Trust’s Board of Trustees and of the Keiskamma Trust's Management Team.

Novuyani lives in Hamburg location. She is 43 years old. Her husband works as a security officer. She has three children who are all students. She has three grand-children and a nine-year old foster child.


Time with the Trust.
I started working here in 2004 and went from embroidery to machine sewing, and after some time, being offered to join art management where I dispatched work and made payments. Today I am part of the Board of Trustees.
With the Keiskamma Trust I have gained confidence in decision-making, learnt the importance of short- and long term planning and along with that built my self-esteem.
I feel very proud to be part of the Board of Trustees because I am there to represent the community.

Most Successful Project.
The Keiskamma Art Project has developed a lot. Throughout the years we have gone from having no basic knowledge of how to run a business to becoming an organization led by an experienced board which plans and budgets properly.
In my view, the most successful project has been the Keiskamma Altarpiece which has reached places like Canada, the United States and England.

How The Keiskamma Trust Has Helped my Community.
Today, more than 140 women are hired by the Art Project. The quality of our handcrafts is improving day by day while the work gives therapy to those who need it the most.
Before this Project we had nothing to do. We were struggling to feed our kids and education was just a dream. Through this project that dream has come true.

Music Academy - Plans for 2010

We have been very excited to have started our new year with Daniel Hutchinson joining us as teacher. He is a Grahamstown based composer and music teacher and is teaching part time for the Academy in Hamburg. In addition, Senja Barthel, a recorder teacher from Berlin, will be joining us from the beginning of March for 6 months. She has studied recorder and music education at the University of Arts Berlin with Christoph Huntgeburth.



Daniel Hutchinson is starting to build on the marimba playing skills of the children. He is equally at home in both classical and jazz musical idioms and has a particular interest in indigenous African music.

Plans for performances in and around Hamburg are under way, including an Easter Sunday concert in Hamburg. We will be performing at the Grahamstown Festival in July. As well, we are considering a benefit concert date in Johannesburg for the end of April.

Special thanks to Dave and Eileen Thayser for their donation of curtains. We have had them embroidered by the Keiskamma Art Project and hung in the music room. Thank you to Suzette Lombard at the SABC Music Library for posters which now adorn the walls of the Music Academy. Thank you to Julia Davey for her donation of a carpet.

Many thanks to all of you for keeping the Music Academy in your hearts.

Yours in music

Helen Vosloo


The Keiskamma Music Academy thank their donors: (contributions since 2008)

Sopranino donor (R500 up to R4 999)
Don and Marianne Macrobert,
AVI, Desklink Publishing,
National Arts Festival,
Nigel Carman

Soprano donor (R5 000 up to R9 999)
Gerhard and Helene Weber

Alto donor (R10 000 up to R24 999)
Dave and Eileen Thayser,
Robert Chalmers and Lawrence Yates- UK,
Dr. & Mrs Viljoen of Northwards Manor House,
SAMRO

Tenor donor (R25 000 up to R49 999)
Tom and Jean Lloyd,
Yamaha South Africa,
National Arts Council

Bass donor (R50 000 up to R99 999)
German Consulate Cape Town,
Oppenheimer Memorial Trust Fund

Contra bass donor (R100 000 +)
Industrial Development Corporation,
Anonymous International Donor,
Rand Merchant Bank


NB: We are able to issue tax receipts since the Keiskamma Trust has 18A tax status as a registered NPO.

For more information about the Keiskamma Music Academy, contact Helen Vosloo at helen@keiskamma.org
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